Method of and apparatus for arresting electric currents.



r A. R. SHARPLES. METHOD 0F AND APPARATUS FOR ARRESTING ELECTRIC GURRENTS.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNE 7, 1912.

Patented Mar. 30, 1915.

2 SHBETS-SHEET l.

INVENTOR k. www

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A. R. SHARPLES. METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR ARRESTING ELECTRIC GURRENTS. APPLICATION FILED JUNEv 7. 1912.

1,133,671. Pate11tedlar.30,195.

2 SHEETSASHEET 2.

KT MT By C n. M @OASE I ATTofen/VEY ooeroiinfrioii or :een

Application le. June 7, 19m.

To aZZ 'ao/wm it may concern:

Be il; known the?, l, ALFRED ROBERTS Siri-Limes, e citizen of the United States,

f siding in elle city oi3 Philadelphia county Tbl oi' i o iledelphizi5 and Siate of lei'insylvanie9 lieve invented e, Method of end Apparatus for rres'biug lleorio Currents, of which tie following is a speoiilcaiion.

lily invention is e method and zipperetus wherein e noir-conducting uid is utilized to prevent e normal volege current Yfrom following e diseherge of abnormally highml'tnge current, for use primarily es o lighsifln arrester.

l have found there when 'oeriein non-oondue-in g liquids ere supplied by cepillery erection, in the form of s thin lilin, byihe absorption of s proper medium, or by oilier suitable ineens so that it is disseminated or mechanically held in the path of e, curreiii,

discharge beiween electrodes 'forming s spark gap or gaps, the usuel iiow of normal current across such gap or gaps, following i-he high potential discharge, is prevenied., 'l/Thilo various liquids 'may be used, such es sulfur chlorid, amyl br'omid, carbon bisuliid, bromoiorin (tribronioineihane),chloroform (triohloromeihene) and nitro-benzin (oil murbene), carbon tetrechlorid has been found most satisfactory within che scope of my investigations, particularly for suppressing the spark endpreventing ionization Where the voltages e're high, y

Various electrodes, of bismuth, copper,

a iron and other materiels, have been found to produce satisfactory results when arranged to form e spark gap above the liquid, with be eleecrodes dipping into the liquid or loved from the body of the liquid ond e non-eonduoiing absorbent niziieriel used for ehe desired supply into the pelli orren @Pross the gzip. -I have found hel. the desired results are (obtained elli- .nily and eer-isictorily by means of elec -rodes oil carb-someone materiel having heir lower parts in carbon tetrachlorid and their upper perle :orrring e spark gap above the liquid. y y

ln the preferred forni ol "ny invention, oarbon,plates, having their lower pori-:ions seperated by e mica plete or oiher insulaiing materiel so that their upper portions forme spari; and tetreohlorid ol ear'- gfon ere seele 1n a rioiieeoiieh..J

Speoinca'cion of Letters loetent.

en i o Serial No. 702, 5G.

iainer, 'with ehe bottoms of the plaies iromersecl in the liquid, whereby e supply oit7 suoli liquid creeps or is fed upwardly into or in proximity to the spark gap. These plates are held together by suitable elemping means and arranged in series Wih noninductive resistance. y

li, is my understanding that the liquid disseminated in the region of ehe spark gap is yaporized by the spark end here is thus :absorbed e large amount of heet, whereby the temperature is lov-:ered below thai; which will slippers en are. The gases libereed by volaiiiising the liquid or vapor probebly combine with particles in the are io sup'oiess Jhe c rren't which would otherwise be sus- I mined by such particles.

in the accompanying drawings, Figure l is on end elevation of a current arresting apparet-us or lightning arrester embodying my invenlion; Fig. 2 is n seciional View of the same La :en on i'she line 2 2 of Fig. l; Fig. 3 is en elevation showing' 'the fece oil" a plaie elecrode comprised in my invenlsion; Fig. l is elevation showing an end of the plate electrode; Fig. 5 is e vertical section teken transversely through the center of a group of plete elecrodes and insulating separators; Gis en eleve-ation showing the construoiion of' modified -form of plate electr de` Fig. 7 is e veriicel seoiion taken trans/ersely through Jhe cener of the plaie shown in Fig. G; l? 8 is a rerticel section teken transversely ihrongh the elecirodes e modified forni oil? the epparaus; Fig. 9 is e veri'zicsl section teken transversely through lie eleearodes of o further vmodified. forni of the upperes and Fig. l0 is e sectional view olf e, stil furher forno of the appare-tus.

The appereus, :is illusirsed in 'gs. 'l and 2, comprises coneiner lie-ving e cover la which is hermetieelly sealed 'hereon and seals carbon teirziohloridv herein ibo container having `he internal bearings l" and le integrally formed therewith. A screw 2 oonnecis the binding post 3, ef;- terior to the container, with the "resilien conducting member 4 which is fixed Within the eonminer on the bearing lb, 'che binding post being7 connecsed by e conductor 5 "so ground A screv.7 6 :inese resilien'; oondueting member 7 Within the container on the bearing 1. This conducting member is elem trically connected with the conducting holder 8 of a non-inductive resistance 9 which is disposed within the container and has its conducting holder 10 connected by the screw 11 with the binding post 12`eX- terior to the container, this post being connected by the conductor 13 with the line wire lei. The angular members 4.- and 7, having the downwardly extending legs 4* and 7, form a clamp for the carbon plateelectrodes 15 and 15 which are separated by the mica or other non-conducting plates 1G, the several plates resting on the bottom of the container andbeing held in the desired relation by the clamp. The bottoms of the several plates are immersed in the carbon tetrachlorid or other liquid in the container and the tops of the plates 15 and 15 above the plates 16 are wholly separated to form the spark gaps 17 above the surface of the liquid. The plates 15 and 15 have beveled edges 15l1 and the-plates 15 have the channels 15b, to avoid any tendency of current to discharge around the mica plates edges contiguous to such beveled edges and channels yand to prevent carbon deposits upon the mica.

The plate electrode 1,5', as illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, has all its edges 15a beveled and is provided with an angular channel l5", the legs of which extend upwardly from the sides of the pla-te, and the separators are provided with angular tops indicated by the dotted line 16a. Such channels'lb may be formed in both faces of plates 15" intermediate of plates 15', as illustrated in Fig. 5, the registering channels havingthe upper edges 16a of the separators 16 between them. I may also provide the plate electrodes with an irregular, roughened or checkered surface above the channels 15b, as by the grooves 15c shown in Figs. 6 and 7. VVnen the line lei receives current of abnormally high potential, a discharge takes place by way of the conductor 13, post 12, screw l1, holder 10, resistance 9, holder 8, conductor 7, electrodes 15 and 15 above plates 16 and across gaps 17, conductor 4, screw 2, post 3 and conductor 5 t'o ground. This discharge having been effected the 'iow of normal current, which ordinarily follows a spark across a gap, is effectually cut o'. l

While the foregoing construction isthe preferred embodiment of my invention, with the information that I have thus far obtained, I have secured satisfactory results with a number of constructions, type of v which are illustrated in Figs. 8, 9 and 10.

The construction shown in Fig. 8 coina pair of posts 23 supported by the base; conducting clamp metal electrodes 25 engaged by the screws,

screws 24 movable` through the tops of the posts; corrugated.;

therein, a pair of phosphor bronze springs 33 fixed to the insulation by the screws dat, a pair of plates 35 (provided with ribs 35 against which the springs press, a sheet i punctured asbestos 36 against whicl'. th

electrodes are pressed by the springs, the conductor 3T containing the resistance c1 e) and connecting a screw 3l with the line 3 and the conductor et@ connecting the other screw 34 to ground. The absorbent material extends into carbon tetracliiorid and feeds the same into the field of the spark.

The construction shown in liig. 10 comprises a vessel il containing carbon tetra chlorid, a pair of carbon electrodes @i2 dip` ping into the carbon tetrachlorid, a glass separator 43 between the lower parts of the electrodes, the screws 41 which are threaded in suitable bearings i5 in the sides of the container and press the plates 42 against the glass separator, the conductor 46 which connects a screw 11i 'with the line 4T and a conductor 48 which connects the other screw 4A to ground. rihe separating means may he provided by glass rods considerably larger in diameter than the distance across the spark gap, thereby securing ample insulating resistance and a large surface of dis charge.

It will be understood that the features of construction may be variously modied. rThe containers may be made of insulating material or metal (as iron) in combination with. means for insulating the conductors.

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Electrodes of appreciable resistance may be A used with consequent modication or elimination of separate resistance in circuit.

Having described my invention, claim:

A1. The method of arresting the flow Vof an electric current follcwing a high potential discharge acrossy a gap which consists in feeding a limited amount of a non-conduct ing uid to said gap and destroying the arc by its vaporization of said huid.,`

2. in a current arresting apparatus, ythe combination of a container, a non-conducting liquid therein, and means comprising carbon electrodes whereby a spark gap is formed above the surface of said liquid and said liquid is fed said spark gap.v

y3. In al current arresting apparatus, the

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e I erben for united f rent arresting apparatus, the 1 .e i 't 2 eenioinatre o). a eent-ainer, a body el non* n e i 1 eordueair in site Container and s v electrodes for forming body p.

er, a body of nona @ont-einer and card submerged in above aeserioed; v .rf `pparatus, the

f, body of non- "f' container, and

u apparatus, the a body non- Container, piate .sed in said liquid o e of said. eleoface, and an insuor said elecface thereof above said body, and an insu' lating plate separating said electrodes belowy said Channel, said insulating plate having an upper edge registering with said channel, substantially as described.

1l.. ln a current arresting apparatus, the combination of a container', a body of nonconducting liquid in saidc-ontainer, carbonaceous plate electrodes partially immersed in said container and vforming a spark gap above said body, one or more of said plates being Aout away along an edge or edges thereof, and a mica plate separating said electrodes below said spa-rk gap, substantially as described.

12. in a current arresting apparatus, the

combination of a Container, a non-eonduot- `ing liquid (adapted for suppressing an are) in said container, yelectrodes in said container, said electrodes forming a spark gap, an insulating separator' between said eleotiodes, and resilient conducting and clamping means whereby said electrodes and separators are pressed together.

13. In a current arresting apparatus, the' combination of a container having bearings therein, a non-conducting liquid therein, oarbonaceous plate electrodes in said container with their bottoms immersed in said liquid and their tops forming a spark gap,

a mica separating plate between said eleotrodes, a pair of resilient contacts connected with said bearings whereby said electrodes and plates are pressed together, and a noninduetive resistance in said container electrically connected with one of said contacts.

In witness whereof I hare hereunto set my name May, 1912, in the presence of the subscribing Witnesses.

ALFRED ROBERTS SHRPLES. Witnesses:

WM. H. GRAVER, W. J. JAMIsoN. 

